LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (BP) -- David Book didn't have a ticket to the hockey game on Feb. 22, 1980, that earned the description "Miracle on Ice." He lived half a mile from the arena, but it was the toughest ticket in town to get.

So, like most Americans, Book and his family watched on TV as the U.S. men's hockey team stunned the mighty Russians in the semifinal of the 1980 Olympics. As the game ended, the Books stepped out onto their veranda and heard the cheers and chants from the arena in the distance: "USA! USA! USA!" Read More

MIAMI (BP) -- Stefen Wisniewski of the Kansas City Chiefs thought he had everything figured out during his teenage years in Pennsylvania. Though he was raised in a Christian home with godly parents and attended church regularly, he admits that he was more self-sufficient than he should have been.

"I thought I was doing well in life," he told Baptist Press during Super Bowl Opening Night Jan. 27 at Marlins Park. "I thought I was successful, doing well in sports and academics and all that. And God really humbled me." Read More

ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) -- Troy Sadowski was the first All-American tight end that the University of Georgia ever had, and he went on to have a 10-year career in the National Football League playing for six different teams, including the Falcons, Steelers and Jets. Despite the sterling athletic career, something was missing.

"The first 31 years of my life, I was as lost as a duck in the desert," Sadowski said. "In the NFL, I got to a low point. It was a very dark time. It wasn't until I went to the First Baptist Church of Woodstock (Ga.) and heard Johnny Hunt preach that I understood what the Gospel was all about." Read More

MIAMI (BP) -- The impact of Jordan Matthews on the San Francisco 49ers isn't something that can be measured by his football performance. The wide receiver has spent most of the season on the inactive list, playing in only three games and catching four passes.

But that's OK with him -- because Matthews knows that the eternal impact he's having on the team is far more valuable than any contribution he can make on the field. Read More

MIAMI (BP) -- Daryl Jones knows what it's like to get ready for Sundays. As a wide receiver in the NFL in the early 2000s, he played four seasons for the New York Giants, Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings.

But this Sunday, as the eyes of the world turn toward America's biggest football game, Jones is getting ready for an even bigger Sunday. Less than 20 minutes away from Hard Rock Stadium, the site of Super Bowl LIV, Jones will preach the Gospel at The Rock Fellowship Church, a church he planted in Miami in 2016. Read More

Pastor and author Jared Wellman examines, "How can I be so despondent over a person I've never met? And why is anyone ever upset over the unexpected passing of a celebrity they don't personally know?" Read More

At the Rugby World Cup in Tokyo, IMB writer Caroline Anderson witnessed how global sporting events bring nations together. IMB missionaries have created a missions strategy for the upcoming 2020 Summer Olympics, also in Tokyo. Read More

BATON ROUGE, La. (BP) -- Blake Ferguson has had a remarkable football career in a unique position. He came to LSU as the country's number one long snapper as a senior in high school, and last year he was named best collegiate long snapper.

On top of that, he took over the job for the Tigers from his brother Reid, who was signed after graduation as the long snapper for the NFL's Buffalo Bills. Scouts are predicting Blake will play at that level on Sundays, too. Read More

NASHVILLE (BP) -- Americans are expected to wager more than $8 billion on this year's NCAA men's basketball tournament. But according to a new study released today (March 20), don't bet on many pastors joining in.

LifeWay Research's survey -- conducted Aug. 29–Sept. 11 -- found most pastors believe it is morally wrong to bet on sports, while few agree it should be legalized nationwide. Read More

Formed in 1946 by the Southern Baptist Convention, and supported with Cooperative Program funds, Baptist Press (BP) is a daily (Monday-Friday) international news service. Operating from a central bureau in Nashville, Tenn., BP works with a large network of contributing writers, photographers and editorial providers to produce BP News.